As Delhi and other major cities in the country gasp for fresh air, a study published in The Journal of Pediatrics has warned that exposure to air pollution is putting the unborn babies at risk. It noted that just prior to conception or during the first month of pregnancy, air pollution imposes an increased risk of birth defects, such as cleft lip or palate or abnormal hearts.
The study has come close on the heels of the UNICEF report which said that almost 17 million infants worldwide are breathing toxic air, potentially affecting their brain development.
The researchers in The journal of Pediatrics said that although the increased risk is modest, the potential impact on a population basis is noteworthy because all pregnant women have some amount of exposure.
Emily DeFranco, a physician at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center and the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine and senior author of the study, pointed out that tiny particles in polluted air can deposit deep into the lower airways and air sacs within the lungs and enter the circulatory system.
“The most susceptible time of exposure appears to be the one month before and after conception,” she said adding that public health efforts should continue to highlight the importance of minimizing population-level exposure to harmful particulate matter in the air.”
Fine particulate matter is a mixture of extremely small particles and liquid droplets that get into the air and, once inhaled, can adversely impact health.
To conduct the study, the researchers used birth certificate data from the Ohio Department of Health and particulate matter data from the US Environmental Protection Agency's 57 monitoring stations throughout Ohio.
Their conclusion followed linking with the geographic coordinates of the mother's residence for each birth with the nearest monitoring station and calculated average exposures. They then estimated the association between abnormalities at birth and the mother's exposure to increased levels of fine particulate matter in the air during pregnancy.
The UNICEF report too has noted that babies in South Asia were worst affected, with more than 12 million living in areas with pollution six times higher than safe levels.
It said that breathing particulate air pollution could damage brain tissue and undermine cognitive development.
Prof (Dr) Brig Ashok K Rajput (Retd), senior consultant ( Pulmonology) Venkateshwar Hospital, said, “During the cold season, your resistance and immunity levels are low, while in newborn babies it is still developing. This makes them susceptible to the prevalent germs and infections in the atmosphere. Young children's lungs are also more prone to the effects of air pollution and dust allergies. This is why you will see a lot of children suffering from breathing problems or lung allergies in highly polluted cities.”